Steel probed in casino collapse

Jan. 31, 2012

Loading Photo Galleries ...

Written by

and Lisa Bernard-Kuhn

DOWNTOWN — Steel beams fabricated by a Jackson, Miss., firm and installed by J&B Steel Erectors Inc. of West Chester will be examined as part of dual investigations into the collapse last Friday of the future Horseshoe Casino Cincinnati.

Probes by the U.S. Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) and the city of Cincinnati are ongoing to determine why a steel beam supporting a section of the second floor collapsed while cement workers poured concrete on sheet metal on top of it.

Scott Allen, OSHA spokesman, said investigators will be talking to key contractors on the job: J&B, which began installing the steel frame last September; Jostin Constuction, which was pouring the cement during the collapse; Woolpert, the civil engineer that crafted the building specifications; and Messer Construction Co., the construction manager that oversees the project.

“We’ll look at all aspects to determine the cause,” said Scott Allen, an OSHA spokesman.

Construction of the future Horseshoe Casino Cincinnati remained halted on Monday as investigators continued to examine potential causes. At least 13 unidentified workers were hospitalized; one remained in serious condition at Bethesda North on Monday.

OSHA and city officials declined to speculate how long their separate reviews will take or how soon they will clear the site to resume construction. Both have to give the okay for work to continue. A specific cause does not have to be determined, just that building design and work conditions are deemed safe, they said.

Experts said construction work might resume in a few days or in several weeks, depending on the complexity of the investigation.

The city is investigating after building officials evaluated the site on Friday. The city is awaiting findings by structural engineers working for the casino, which the developer will forward to city officials.

Amit Ghosh, the city’s chief building officer, is scheduled to brief the city council’s Major Transportation and Infrastructure Projects Subcommittee today on the accident, the investigation and the impact.

(Page 2 of 2)

Allen said OSHA had inspectors examining the site with some contractors over the weekend. He said once investigators have assessed the site, they will likely supervise the cleanup, which could yield additional clues.

Ihab Saad, chairman of the Department of Construction Management at Northern Kentucky University, said the more complicated the investigation, the longer it takes to restart work and ultimately conclude the inquiry. Work could resume in a few days or a few weeks.

“The construction site is quite large – they could resume work in areas not deemed to be dangerous,” he said.

Saad is not involved with the project and declined to speculate on the cause of the accident.

However, he noted that steel beams are routinely inspected with ultrasound for small cracks and breaks before they’re used in a construction job. He was also skeptical of a design flaw, since plans have been reviewed by engineers, inspectors and contractors.

Saad said the bolts holding the beam that gave way may have too tight or not tight enough.

A final cause of the accident may not determined for as long as six months. OSHA is still investigating a similar incident that befell Horseshoe casino construction six weeks earlier in Cleveland, but workers resumed development after one week.

Toya Estes, president of J&B Steel, expressed concern for injured workers and vowed to help investigators.

“Our prayers are with the injured workers and their families and we stand ready to provide any assistance to them that we can,” said Estes in a written statement. “We, along with all other contractors on the project, are cooperating with OSHA and other investigators to identify the causes of this accident and to see that the potential for any future problems are corrected immediately.”

Estes’ firm is a subcontractor to Jackson, Mississippi-based Steel Service, which fabricated the steel for the job.

Messer and Jostin issued similar statements of concern along with pledges of full cooperation over the weekend. Woolpert deferred to developer Rock Gaming and Messer for comment. Rock Gaming officials said it’s too early to know why the accident occurred.